Backcountry Notes

Siblings, photographed in 1994 (click on image for larger view)Although I am the oldest of five siblings, I do not recall a time of being the "only child" in the family.  My conscious memories begin at about age 2-1/2, at which time I had a sister, who could walk and talk, and a baby brother, who was still gurgling and burping.  Two more sisters came later to complete what my mother called "The Frantic Five." So, while many oldest-children recall being the one and only, and often resented the arrival of an usurper, for me there has never been a time without siblings.

Having younger siblings was not an un-mixed blessing, to be sure.  They could be cute, fun, conspiratorial, and other good sibling things.  Then there were times when they seemed like a pack of ragamuffins intent on putting grubby fingerprints all over my stuff. But that's one of the benefits of having siblings -- learning tolerance and conflict-resolution. Getting along, as it were. So what if they were slow learners?

Above: Four of us, photographed at the city park lake in Greensboro, NC, in 1954.  That's me, second from left, laying a hug on sister Meredith. Sister Lee is looking dubious about the picture-taking business, brother Chris looks ready to break into a two-step. 

Not that our parents were from large families; our father had one sister, our mother was an only child.  But those were the days of extended family.  Our mother had a large number of cousins and her extended family was close-knit; so she had cousins who served as surrogate siblings. In those days the custom of visiting was alive and well and we knew the cousins well -- we called them "uncles" and "aunts," thus being spared as children from having to deal with the concept of first-cousin-once-removed.

A lot of socialization is learned at home, in early years, and because there were five of us, we were constantly on a learning curve -- sharing, taking turns, voting on things to do or places to go. The youngest, Leslie, was "my baby." I got to help with such things as feeding her (she loved the apricot sauce but was less than fond of peas) and taking dirty diapers to the hamper.

In the brave new world of the 21st century, siblings are becoming a rarity in Western civilizations.  One-child and no-child couples are so prevalent in some countries that population growth is negative. Consider that those in the second generation of one-child families not only have no brothers or sisters; they have no aunts, no uncles, and no first cousins.  The third generation will have no brothers, no sisters, no aunts, no uncles, no first cousins, and no second cousins.  I find it hard to imagine growing up in such a family.

So for my sibs on this Thanksgiving, here's to you -- ya grubby-fingered little ragamuffins.  Have a good turkey day!